Quakes sign Khari Stephenson

The San Jose Earthquakes announced today that they have signed Jamaican international midfielder Khari Stephenson. Stephenson will be added to the Earthquakes roster and be available for selection upon receipt of his International Transfer Certificate (ITC). Per league and team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“Adding an experienced physical presence like Khari to our team is something we have been looking to do for a little while now,” said general manager John Doyle. “He brings a great touch and solid work rate to our midfield that will benefit us in our push for the playoffs and in the future.”

Stephenson, 29, returns to MLS after playing the past five seasons in both Sweden and Norway. The Jamaican midfielder most recently played at Aalesunds FK in the Norwegian Tippeligean (the top league in Norway). He joined Aalesunds in 2008 and scored four goals in 39 appearances, helping his club to the Norwegian Cup title in 2009. He was a part of their qualification for the 2010/2011 Europa Cup also.

Before his move to Norway, Stephenson spent three years in Sweden with AIK, a perennial top of the table club and GAIS in the Swedish Allsvenskan (the top Swedish league). With AIK in 2007-08, Stephenson scored a pair of goals in 25 appearances. In 2006, he scored two goals in 25 appearances for GAIS, one of the oldest clubs in Swedish football.

Stephenson began his professional career in MLS with the Chicago Fire after being drafted 27th overall in the 2004 MLS SuperDraft out of Williams College (a Division III school). He was soon traded to Kansas City and scored a goal in the playoffs on the Wizards’ run to the MLS Cup Final. In his MLS career, he has scored one goal in the playoffs and appeared in nine regular season matches for the Wizards, where he was a teammate of current Earthquakes forward, Scott Sealy.

A native of Kingston, Stephenson has made 26 appearances for the Jamaican National Team. He has scored three goals for his country and is a national team teammate of current Earthquakes forward Ryan Johnson.

Prior to joining MLS, Stephenson was a Division III first team All-American in both his junior and senior seasons. As a senior, he scored a team-high 15 goals and finished his collegiate career with 40 goals and 18 assists in his four years.